Two men indicted in connection with deaths of 53 migrants who were found in tractor-trailer

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Two Texas males have been indicted Wednesday on federal expenses for his or her roles within the deaths of 53 folks in what officers have referred to as the deadliest migrant smuggling case in U.S. historical past.

The migrants — from Mexico and Central America — have been present in a sweltering tractor-trailer in Southwest San Antonio final month. Their deaths drew worldwide outrage.

Homero Zamorano Jr. of Pasadena and Christian Martinez of Palestine face expenses of transporting undocumented migrants in a means that resulted in severe damage, dying and the jeopardizing of lives. If tried and convicted, the boys might face life in jail or the dying penalty.

The USA Lawyer’s Workplace for the Western District of Texas introduced the indictments Wednesday.

Zamorano, 45, was the motive force of the tractor-trailer. He deserted it on a semirural highway close to Interstate 35 and tried to flee, officers beforehand mentioned.

“A search warrant was executed on a cellphone belonging to Zamorano. Via investigation, it was found that communications occurred between Zamorano and Martinez regarding the smuggling occasion,” mentioned a Wednesday assertion from the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace.

Federal officers mentioned that 48 migrants died on the scene — together with 22 folks from Mexico, seven from Guatemala and two from Honduras. Sixteen different undocumented migrants have been taken to hospitals, the place 5 of them died.

The ugly crime and its sheer scale — 64 migrants huddled in an enormous rig with out water or air con, in warmth that reached 100 levels that day — has staggered even veteran legislation enforcement officers who work alongside the U.S.-Mexico border.

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